Contention
by Moonbeam's Shadow
Summary: Katniss was not in time to volunteer for Prim. Prim would have to face the Hunger Games herself, but can Katniss face the idea that she had let her sister down? How could she watch Prim die for the entertainment of a nation of strangers, Contending for life?
1. Chapter 1

**Contention**

"We could do it you know." The words echoed in her head, resonating louder with each repeat. As fast as she had dismissed the idea of leaving District 12, Gale's proposal stuck with her, and refused to vanish. Even now, as she stood at the reaping, Katniss could not banish the taunting, tempting thoughts from her head. To never again have to stand here and await the announcement of death, to never have to fear for her family again, it was too much to hope for. And yet… And yet, it could work.

Of course, it'll be hard for everyone who didn't hunt on a regular basis, but between Gale and herself, they may have a chance. They could teach Vick and Rory how to hunt, and Posy could learn how to heal from Katniss's mom along side-

"Primrose Everdeen!"

"Leave. Live in the woods. Leave…" Freedom, food, the chance for a better life.

Wait.

What's happening?

"Prim!"

"Peeta Mellark!"

No. No, no, no!

"…The District 12 Tributes." She was too late. She had to try.

"I volunteer!" The words stuck in her throat. The crowd was already dispersing. The tributes were gone. Katniss stood frozen in a panic, then crumpled to the ground. Kneeling in the dirt and cobble stones, she clutched her head in horror. She'd failed her. She'd failed her. She'd failed her! That little girl had depended on her and her alone for years, and the one time –the one time! - she had felt safe in straying in thought Prim had paid for it with her life.

"Katniss. Katniss!" Gale was by her side, trying to get her to move. "Katniss, we have to go see her."

That got her to move, but with movement came the end of the paralyzing shock, and the beginning of the tears. She walked slowly, as if to her own doom; legs half frozen in fear. When they finally made it to the room in the Justice Building, Katniss was surprised not to find her sister a bleeding, disfigured corpse yet. She was still alive… for now.

"Katniss!" Prim ran into her arms when she saw her sister. Katniss, numb with grief, pulled Prim close to her on instinct, tears still cascading down her face.

"Prim, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry." Prim just stood there and cried in her arms as Katniss apologized over and over again. They didn't notice their mom come in. They didn't notice her leave in silence. Finally, Katniss loosened her grip and kneeled in front of her sister.

"Prim, look at me." With her last ounce of strength, Katniss did the one thing she had promised herself she would never do. "Prim, you know everything I do about plants, what's safe to eat, what to use on wounds. You can use that in the arena. You just need to run. Just run and hide and don't let them find you. You just need to out last the rest of them." Besides let Prim down, and cause her to die by her failure, Katniss had promised herself she would never lie to Prim.

Prim just looked at her sister and nodded her head, wiping her tears from her eyes. Katniss pulled her down to her shoulder and held her close one last time. Gale came in at one point and said something, but Katniss was deaf to anything but the beating of her sister's heart. How many times would it beat before it stopped? How long did she have left to live? Why was this happening? She was one slip of paper in hundreds!

Suddenly Katniss was being yanked up by the back of her dress. The Peacekeepers had waited long enough to take their victims to their deaths. Gale punched the one who had grabbed Katniss, but was grabbed by three others and forced out of the room. Katniss could not hold on tight enough to Prim; they had to pry the two sisters apart screaming. It took two Peacekeepers to drag Katniss outside the Justice Building, where they threw her into Gale's arms. Still she fought; clawing and kicking to get back to Prim's side, to protect her as she had failed to at the Reaping.

Gale held her back, even the most forgiving Peacekeepers who knew them personally would not be so a second time. Not today. Not when all of Panem was watching. He held her back and was knocked to the ground for his efforts. Finally, exhausted, devastated, her strength left her and Katniss slumped against Gale's shoulder, and cried. Gale wrapped himself around her and there they stayed. Gale held her and rubbed her back. He knew what Prim's leaving meant; now that she was gone, nothing would be the same. Katniss's heart was broken, possibly for good.

Gale watched as the car came for the tributes and took them to the train station. He made no effort to get up off the ground. As the car drove away, however, Katniss came back to herself, and stood to follow.

"Are you sure you can do this?" Gale asked, standing beside her.

"I have to. I owe her that much." She replied, chocking back what seemed to be an endless supply of tears. Gale noticed that Katniss stood as frightened prey often did; when they heard the predator, and saw the arrow fly, just before the instinct to flee kicked in. Tense, ready to bolt at a second's notice, and yet knowing full well, her time had come. Gale took her hand and led her to the train station just in time to see Prim's final farewells.

Prim scanned the crowd in front of her, wishing Katniss would come bounding out of it, sweep her up and away to safety, but where was safe? All of Panem had heard her name, seen her face. This time, Katniss could do nothing to protect her. The odds were in her favor, and yet she had still been chosen. This time- this time it was her turn to show Katniss how strong she could be.

Prim found Gale's eyes, and locked onto them. She stood a little straighter; her red eyes seemed to burn with fire instead of unspent tears. Gale nodded. He would deliver her message. Or maybe he didn't have to. There was Katniss! How much had Katniss been crying? This had been the first day in years that Prim had seen Katniss cry, and she knew that, one way or another, it would be the last.

Prim stood tall and proud before her gathered district on the platform in front of the train that would take her to her death. Next to her stood the boy Katniss never thanked for her life. Both had obviously been crying, but that fire in Prim's eyes seemed to catch in Peeta's as she took his hand and cocked a small smile for the cameras. That smile lit a spark of insane hope that began to melt the ice that had formed in Katniss's heart.

It was truly an insane hope, and one that she knew was wrong, and yet, that small smile ignited a district of realists into believers of the impossible. Maybe she had a shot after all. Katniss stepped to the front of the crowd, touched the three middle fingers of her right hand to her lips and lifted them towards Prim and Peeta as a silent thank you and farewell. As the District 12 tributes turned to enter the train at their backs, one by one, every person gathered at the station followed in the sign of respect and farewell.


	2. Chapter 2

"We should have left. All of us. We should have left this morning." Katniss murmured. Gale said nothing as he sat next to her, watching the recap of the Reaping at the Hawthorn's house.

When they had left the platform after the train departed, they went back to find that Katniss's mom had succumbed to her grief and lost herself in her own world again. Katniss just stood there and stared at this broken creature that resembled a statue: unhearing, unseeing, unmoving, uncaring. "I'm sorry," Katniss whispered. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect her. I'm sorry I didn't take her place."

When she could no longer bear to stand before what was left of her family, she walked to her room, pulled out her game bag and packed it with her few possessions: her father's hunting jacket, an extra bow and strings, the ribbon that had been tied around Prim's goat for her birthday. She tore off her mother's dress and flung it carelessly to the side of the room. She changed into her hunting gear, just to try to feel comfortable again, and walked back out to Gale in the front room.

Gale knew, she would never be able to stay here, not with her mother in this state again, not without Prim to give her a reason to stay. Katniss would be living with Gale from now on, but duty still called to her. As much as she disliked her mother for consistently abandoning her, she still needed to keep her alive, for her father, for Prim. As they were walking out of the house, Buttercup pawed at Katniss's ankle. She left to door open for him.

Gale stretched his arm over to rest on the back of the couch behind Katniss and inhaled to reply to Katniss, but what could he say? He sighed in defeat. The regret in her voice made Gale's heart ache, but he knew, as she had, they would not have made it today. Today the odds were not in their favor. That spark of hope Prim had ignited only hours before had died as the other contenders were announced. Only one other 12-year-old had been chosen. The rest were a mix of careers and people twice Prim's size, with possible hidden talents. Prim didn't stand a chance.

Katniss shrugged off Gale's arm and moved off the couch to stand at the window. She had embarrassed herself enough for one day; she'd cried more in the past two hours than she had in the four years since her father's death.

"Katniss," Gale walked over to stand behind her, and placed his hand on her shoulder. In that small gesture, Katniss read a million messages in a second: shared grief, longing, acceptance, protection, friendship, and hope. Most of all she focused on the hope. That was what those long, silent hours hunting had created between them; hope and the ability to read one another.

If she had been only a second earlier, if Katniss would have been paying attention like she was supposed to have been, she would not be standing here now. If she could switch places with Prim right now, would Prim be standing here with Gale, or would she have had to face watching Katniss's death alone? Would their mother have left Prim the way she had left Katniss, or would she have been able to hold on for her? What was Prim doing now? Were her mentors doing anything for her? Haymitch was a notorious drunk, what could he possibly do to help? If Katniss were in Prim's place right now, she would make Haymitch help her.

But she wasn't. She was here.

Hazelle had set Katniss up on the couch. Tomorrow, they'd ask one of the Hob traders to help them move Katniss's bed from her house to Posy's room, where she would stay permanently. Tomorrow. How was the world still spinning? How could night and day still come and go so easily? Katniss stared out the window, lost in thought until Gale picked her up and swung her into a chair at the table for dinner.

"What are you-?"

"I'm not going to let you stop eating just because Prim isn't here. She's probably eating better at the Capitol then any of us ever have." Gale said sternly. He refused to watch Katniss punish herself for not being fast enough to sacrifice herself. Katniss said nothing, and looked away from him.

Dinner was as a silent affair. Katniss ate only enough to make Gale stop staring. Her apatite was gone. It was all she could do to keep herself from constantly crying. Everything else just seemed too great an effort. After dinner, after dark, after everyone else had gone to bed and she had thanked Hazelle again for taking her into her home. After she had finally persuaded Gale to go to bed and leave her to the silence of the night, Katniss laid down on the couch and cried. Hot, silent tears tore tracks of salt into her flesh until Katniss thought her face would never be free of salt again, for surely, her life would always be haunted by Prim's death.

Prim stood in the doorway of the dining car on the train. Peeta sat by a window, seeming to be watching the world go by, but at 200 miles an hour the world was a blur. Effie Trinket sat opposite him, writing something in her notebook. That Haymitch guy was nowhere to be seen.

Effie noticed her standing in the doorway and smiled, "Come on in dear," she said, waving Prim over with her vividly colored hand. "Dinner should be served soon."

Prim took the seat next to Effie, and folded her hands in her lap, gathering her courage to speak. She noticed Effie was still scribbling fast and asked "Excuse me, what are you writing?"

Effie held up her finger as she finished, then turned to the nice, polite girl beside her, "I'm just making sure every thing is going as scheduled."

"Oh." Prim said. After a short pause she blurted "How are we going to win the games?" Peeta turned to look at her, and Effie tapped her pen against her lips.

"What makes you think we're gonna win?" Peeta wanted to know how this little slip of a girl had the audacity to think she could survive the Games. "How do you know we won't just die as soon as the games start?"

Prim looked him in the eye, raised her chin and said, "Katniss told me so." Peeta blushed at the mention of Katniss's name. She was Prim's sister, of course she'd said as much. They didn't stand a chance.

"What else did Katniss tell you?" Effie asked.

"She said I could use the plants, and hide until the game was over." Prim and Effie began talking strategy. Prim described her work as her mother's assistant when she was called on as a healer. Prim also told her about the family's book describing medical and eatable plants, and how she could make a bandage out of almost anything.

During her regaling of a particularly bad squirrel bite a few summers ago, Haymitch said rather loudly, "Well, this one might actually have some potential after all!" This made Prim and Effie jump; no one had noticed him enter the room. "And what about you, boy? Can you do anything?" Haymitch asked Peeta, waving his glass towards him so that its contents spilled on to the rug. Effie pursed her lips in dislike and disapproval, but said nothing.

Peeta clenched his hands and shrugged. "I was a baker; the most I ever did was haul some bags of flour and decorate cakes." Haymitch "hmm"ed and walked back to his room. Peeta looked from Prim to Effie and back before excusing himself to his own room. There he flopped onto the bed and recounted all his regrets in life. The greatest being he had never spoken to the love of his life, sister to the child in next car. If he ever got the chance to speak to Katniss again, that would mean her sister was dead. The Games provided an opportunity to win her heart by protecting Prim through to the end, but that would only result in his own death, and there was no guarantee that either of them would make it so far that his death could save Prim.

Either way, his life was over before it had really begun.


	3. Chapter 3

Prim was in the forest. She had only been here a couple of times with Katniss, but she recognized the outcropping she was standing in. This view was amazing and it was one of the few things she liked about the forest. As she looked around, a mockingjay swooped in front of her and around her a few times before landing on a low-hanging branch. Then another one flew in and joined it.

Prim giggled, the mockingjays were the only other part of the forest she loved. "Hello," she said. Prim walked closer and waited for the mockingjays to mimic her greeting. Instead, one mockingjay tilted its head to the side, as if considering her. The other hummed a short phrase of Prim's favorite song, Deep in the Meadow.

Suddenly, Prim felt a strong need to be closer to the birds. She turned to look at the trunk of the tree, and saw places she could put her hands and feet to climb. About half way up the rough bark, the two birds took off in terrified flight. "No, wait!" Prim cried. As tears slipped from her eyes, she noticed how warm she felt. She looked over her shoulder to see the cause of the birds' flight. It was a pillar of fire and it was heading right for her!

Prim dropped to the ground and ran for her life, but no matter how far or fast she ran, the pillar kept getting closer and closer. And the fire was spreading. It was on all sides of her now, tendrils racing alongside her. Prim broke through the brush at breakneck speed and kept running. The two mockingjays were suddenly flying around her head, she couldn't see! Prim managed to stumble to a halt just before she fell off a ledge. Silently the birds landed, one on each shoulder.

With a quick dread, Prim turned to meet the pillar of fire, but as she did her foot slipped. She was falling! Flames leapt up, as if to catch her, and she burned, she burned, she burned!

Prim sat bolt upright and screamed. She stuffed her blanket into her mouth, and sobbed. No one came to save her. No one was coming now. She was in the Capital, far from anyone who cared. As she remembered catching fire in her dream, she recalled earlier that night at the Tribute's Parade, where a stylist named Cinna had actually lit her on fire. Prim tried to calm herself, instead of being a pyre, she was a torch. She was the girl on fire; lighting the way, not burning to her death. She was a torch and she was getting warmer and warmer… until she was asleep again.

Katniss sat enthralled, staring at the television screen. At first, she could hardly make herself watch, but if she could not take her sister's place, the least she could do was be with her in spirit, sending her love, support and the little strength she had left. Katniss found herself sizing up her sister's enemies, her enemies. The male from District two looked tough, but the male from District 11 down right scared her for Prim. The girl from District 11 looked like she had about as much chance of winning the Games as Prim did, but Katniss doubted that Prim could kill even her.

Then, from the back of the parade, a light shown, and it grew brighter. Even Ceaser Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith were taken by surprise, and faltered in their narration. As the light road out, drawn by two smoky shadows, Katniss could feel everyone in Panem catch their breath. There was Prim, she was sitting on Peeta's shoulders, her right hand clutched in his, her left waving a rose. Both were aflame. It looked as if Prim were a torch, held up for all to see; a beacon of hope for all.

Katniss's heart ached as she thought about how she had never thanked Peeta for the bread that saved her family's lives, and now he was trying to save Prim's life again. Or was he simply showing off his strength? What if he had no intention to save the girl on his shoulders? What if he picked her off as soon as he got the chance! Katniss buried her face in her hands. It was unknown to her why every time she saw Prim hold her head high she felt hope, but reality was not kind. The odds were not in her favor. Prim would never win the Hunger Games.


	4. Chapter 4

For three days, there was no word on how Prim was doing. She had gone into training, and all there was to listen to was the announcers giving odds on each tribute. Katniss spent most of her time hunting in the forest. Her mom was completely gone; she hadn't eaten in days. Hazelle was trying to coax her to now, Gale had stayed with his siblings. Katniss was alone in the woods, with only the mockingjays for comfort.

Today, Katniss had wanted to get as far from District 12 as she could. She had managed to walk to the lake that her father had shown her years before. She had never been here alone before, and now she understood why. Everywhere she looked, there was another memory. That's where she taught Gale to swim three summers ago, and there was the patch of grass where they had lain to dry off. Over here were the cat tails where unsuspecting fish liked to swim, they were always easy to catch. Just beyond that was the little lake hut.

Her game bag already full, Katniss dumped it by the doorstep and flopped down on the patch of sweet grass under a nearby tree. The sunlight filtered through the leaves and warmed her skin, but Katniss still felt cold. It was too much to think about, loosing Prim, her mother; even Buttercup had runaway in search of Prim when she didn't come home. Even though she had Gale and his family, she still felt so alone.

"Katniss" a sweet voice on the winds of her memory called to her. Katniss closed her eyes and succumbed to the memory. "Katniss, sing the willow song!" Prim was four years old. Their mother was inside cooking dinner, and the two of them were in the yard waiting for their father to come back from the mines. Prim was making a dandelion tiara for him.

Her eyes still closed, Katniss began the song, shaky at first, her voice quavering as she tried to stay in the past. There was Prim, long before she had seen blood and injury, before her father had been blown to bits in the mines, before the Reaping. Happy, laughing, and free… No. Not free. No one was free under the tyranny of the Capital.

"Leave. Run away… We could do it…"

Katniss finished her song, and the mockingjays took it up. She lay quiet, watching the sun move behind the leaves, listening to the birds sing. With Prim and her mother lost, and Rory and Vick almost old enough to hunt on their own, she could do it. She could leave. She could live right here, even. There was plenty of wood, and she could trade for nails and supplies at the hob to make the hut livable. Out here, away from the District, from the Capital, she could live in peace. And she wouldn't be too far if anyone got into trouble or if she needed help.

But would it be far enough away? This close to the fence, what if the invisible hovercraft found her and took her to the Capital? She needed someone at her back. She needed Gale to come with her if she ever left, even if just to come this far, but he would never abandon his family, and she could never ask him to.

Suddenly she heard a twig snap. In a second she had her bow up and an arrow ready. Kneeling in the grass, she aimed for the bushes to the far side of the tree. It was Gale. SHe lowered her weapon. He'd stepped on that twig on purpose to warn her he was coming. Instantly she saw the look on his face and knew before he said anything. Katniss dropped her bow and arrow.

"Katniss, your mother…" He walked over to her and knelt beside her.

"She's gone, isn't she?" Katniss whispered her arms hung limp at her side. That was two people she had failed to keep alive. How had she failed so completely? If her father had been alive, he would have been able to help Prim and her mother.

Gale caught her as Katniss collapsed.

When Katniss woke up, she found herself in the lake hut, a fire roaring in the hearth, Gale nowhere to be seen. Katniss covered her face with her arm, embarrassed for her constant weakness. This was why her mother died. This was why Prim was in the Hunger Games: this disgusting weakness. She should have been able to hold it together. Why couldn't she hold it together!

"Katniss." Why was Gale always there to see her weakness? "Katniss look at me." Nope. Not happening.

Gale blushed in anger and knelt beside her. He grabbed the arm she was hiding behind and pinned it next to her head. Caught off guard, Katniss swung her free fist at him, but Gale caught it and pinned that beside her too. He knelt on either side of her still squirming body and sat on her legs. "Damn it Katniss, why can't you trust me!" He yelled.

"You're the one pinning me!" Gale hung his head in defeat, and sighed. He got up and walked to the door frame. Katniss sat up immediately so he couldn't pin her again.

"After everything we've been through together, why is it so hard for you to let me see you cry?" he said, but when Katniss said nothing he turned around to look at her. "You aren't weak for crying, not after everything that's happened." Still, Katniss wouldn't look at him. He walked over, knelt in front of her this time, and hooked his finger under her chin, forcing her to look at him. "You're the strongest person I know, Katniss. Just let me help you through this."

Again, she was going to cry. She tried to turn her head, but Gale had his hands on either side of her face now, his thumbs brushing away the tears that managed to slip past her. That sweet gesture made her look him in the eye for the first time since Prim was taken. In those eyes she saw her sorrow reflected back at her. In that instant, she finally understood: she would never be alone as long as Gale was with her.

"Why?" she croaked. Why had the Capital taken everything? Why was she unable to do anything about it? Why was Gale always there? Why hadn't she noticed before? Why couldn't she figure out which question she was asking him right then?

Gale simply leaned in and kissed her. There was no answer he could have given that was better than this: the Capital can do all it wishes, we will stand strong together, because I love you. This was the last coherent thought that made it through Katniss's head. Soon, Gale was deepening the kiss, and it was all Katniss could do to hold onto him. Her hands jumped up from the ground, where they had been supporting her, to Gale's shoulders. As his hands snaked down to support her back, hers moved up into his hair, gripping it tight in a frenzy of sudden desire.

Slowly, Gale lowered her back down to the floor, and broke the kiss. For the first time in days, Katniss didn't feel like the world was crushing her from the inside out. She had completely forgotten about the world for a few precious seconds. Gale opened his mouth to say something, but Katniss cut him off, kissing him again. She wanted to keep this blissful imitation ignorance for as long as possible.

She fought Gale for dominance in the kiss, but surrendered when his hand moved down to her breast and began to massage it. Gale smirked into the kiss and moved his lips to her neck. His hand slipped under her shirt and tugged her breast band out of the way to continue his teasing. Every touch felt like lightening; scorching her, spreading electricity throughout her whole body.

Gale sat back, much to Katniss's disappointment. He beckoned her to sit up too and whispered "Take off your shirt." Katniss breathed heavily and did as told, removing her breast band as well. As she was undressing, Gale's eyes followed her every movement. When she stopped moving, Gales eye were finally drawn to her exposed chest.

"Now it's your turn." Katniss said, fingering the hem of his shirt. Still captivated by her nakedness, Gale pulled his shirt over his head, and found her eyes again. For a minute he debated going any farther, but the pleading look in her eyes drew him in again. He trailed kisses down from her lips, under her jaw, down her neck, across her chest to her left breast. The wonderful noises Katniss was making spurring him on. Guiding her back down to the floor, he unbuttoned her pants, and let his hand slide slowly under the material, giving his partner plenty of time to reconsider.

When no request to stop came, he dipped a finger between her folds, and began to rub the bundle of nerves he found there. Katniss cried out in ecstasy and could hardly hold still. Gale kissed his way over to her right breast and back up again to her neck, just under her ear. Katniss held onto him for dear life, her chest pressed against his, her head thrown back in a silent scream. When Gale suddenly stopped and retrieved his hand from her pants, Katniss nearly sobbed.

"What are you-?"

"You'll see." He said, cutting her off.

Gale crawled back to her pelvis, and pulled her pants off, taking her underwear with them. Katniss blushed at her exposure, and felt awkward now that she had caught her breath again. She didn't want to come back to her senses yet. Her breathing began to pick up to a panic.

Gale was looking at her in all her glory, his hungry eyes worshipping her all the way backup to her eyes. He chuckled when he saw the pleading in her eyes again and mistook it for desire. He made his way back to her and kissed her again. When he felt her cling to him again, he grew worried, but Katniss left him no room for questions. She kissed him for all she was worth, chasing away the shadows in her mind by exploring his mouth and neck. When she began sucking and nibbling on his ear, the moans he sighed blew away every other thought in her head.

Finally he could take no more. Unbuttoning his own pants, Gale manuvered his other hand between Katniss's thighs. His fingers found her entrance and snuck inside. Katniss moaned loudly "Gale!" Almost at the edge of sanity with need, Gale spread her legs and positioned himself. With his last ounce of clarity, he asked her "Are you sure?" Katniss kissed him in response, entwining her fingers through his hair.

Gale moved slowly into her, and Katniss broke the kiss with a gasp. It hurt! Gale held still, waiting until Katniss relaxed her body again. In the mean time he brushed his lips against hers, sucked on her neck until she was moaning again, and let her forget her pain. Soon she was pressing her hips upwards, silently begging him to move. Slowly, Gale complied, each thrust bringing waves of pleasure to crash over their entire bodies. The noises she was making, the feelings she was giving him, made it impossible to keep that slow pace for long. His pace grew faster and faster until he lost all control, slamming into her, causing Katniss to come in a wave of pure bliss. At the last minute he remembered to pull out and came on her thigh.

For a minute, he just sat there panting, his eyes drinking in her sweaty, panting, beautiful body. He grabbed his discarded pants and wiped his mess off of her. Then laid down next to her in the nest of their discarded clothes, by the warmth of the fire, and whispered, "I love you." Katniss, curled up against him, waited until his breathing evened out before whispering back "I know."


	5. Chapter 5

The mockingjays were back. They were there every night, guiding her through the forest. They taught her to climb the trees, how to find water in the forest, where to find some of the plants she had seen in the family book. During the training for the past few days, the different stations she had visited had augmented what the mockingjays had to teach her. However, she mostly just spent her dreams talking to the mockingjays. Another female bird had join their group. Prim didn't know what it was about these birds, but they made her feel safe, loved and what was more important, gave her hope.

During the panel test in front of the judges, she had managed to score a 5 with her knowledge of plants, and basic survival skills. What she didn't show the panel, was her growing talent with knives. Her aim was still very shaky, but her knowledge of the human body made her deadly at close range. She knew where each artery and vein within easy access lay. If someone got too close to her, they would not live through the night. However, whether she could kill someone to preserve her own life, had yet to be seen.

Prim stood in front of her seat in the line of tributes behind Caesar Flickerman. Her name was next to be called; she had practiced with Cinna and Haymitch earlier in the day, and felt ready. She hoped Katniss was watching her. This was her moment to shine.

Katniss sat tense next to Gale on the couch in the Hawthorn's house. When she had woken up at the lake house that morning, and saw Gale dressing in the early morning light, she couldn't bring herself to look at him. She had wanted to run. However, whether she wanted to run into his arms or as far away from him as possible, she couldn't decide. As a result of being pulled in too many directions at once, she just tensed up, and could not relax.

Gale had taken her silence and ridged state to mean she regretted what had happened between them. It broke his heart to see her in such a state; obviously not sharing his feelings, but then again, Katniss had always been a hard girl to read when she wanted to be. Through out the interview broadcast, all Gale was paying attention to was Katniss; trying to get a clearer read on her thoughts. He studied the rise and fall of her chest, the blood slowly draining from her knuckles as she clenched her fists. As much as he wanted to comfort her, space was probably the best thing to give her right now.

"For our next guest, Primrose Everdeen, but we know her better as The Girl on Fire!" Caesar Flickerman announced as the crowd went wild. Prim walked over to center stage in a beautiful white dress. As she moved the material seemed to catch the light and flicker like the light of a candle. "Oh, my dear," said Flickerman as he placed a hand on his chest. "Look at you! You're the light of this stage tonight."

Prim giggled, "So long as I don't burn you up, I'm happy to be here." The audience laughed. Katniss grimaced.

Flickerman laughed like his sides were aching. "Oh! Oh, my dear. I should like that I didn't get burned up too. But I must admit, and I'm sure we would all agree, I've never seen anything like when you blazed at the Tribute's Parade. It was the most spectacular thing I've seen in years!"

Prim smiled and looked out into the crowd. Just as Cinna had told her, she looked into the eyes of anyone she saw and imaged they were Katniss, her mom, her friends at school, and then she found Cinna. He gave her the signal. "I'd be happy to let you see me blaze again," she said. Prim opened her arms in a welcoming gesture, palms face out, and backed up a few paces. Then, she began to twirl. All at once, the material of her dress seemed to glow brighter and brighter, shimmering in the stage lights until one would think they'd go blind.

"Ha ha!" Flickerman cried. Prim stopped to face him again and stumbled a bit. "Careful there. You are certainly the brightest thing to ever cross this stage," he said as he steadied her. "Your family must be proud. Did they come to say goodbye when you left home?" What a cruel thing to ask, Katniss thought. Of course she did.

Prim nodded her head. "My sister told me how to win."

"Is that so?" Flickerman chuckled. "I'm sure we'd all like to hear what she said."

Prim eyes glowed with a fierce determination as she brought her finger to her lips. "It's a secret." There is was again; that determined look that gave Katniss hope. Why couldn't she stop herself from hoping? She was just setting herself up for pain.

"Is there anything you would like to say to your sister now?"

Prim looked into the camera, her smile gone. Katniss leaned closer to the screen, her eyes meeting her sister's. "I love you. Don't loose your fire."

Katniss choked back a sob as Flickerman feigned looking touched and inspired. "Don't loose your fire?" She had lost it as she had been lost in thought at the reaping. Katniss would never forgive herself. Flickerman thanked The Girl on Fire and called his last guest.

As Peeta walked up to center stage, Katniss's guilt washed over her again. Here was someone else she had failed. He had taken a beating form his mother to throw some bread at her, that gesture and that bread had given her the strength and courage to survive. She was in his debt, and yet never even thanked him. Maybe he had only done it out of pity, but it still meant a lot.

"So, Peeta," Flickerman said, "tell me, is there a special girl waiting for you back home?"

Peeta sighed, "No, there's no one." Sadly,Flickerman did not buy it.

"I don't believe that for a second! With a face like that, don't you folks agree?" The audience showed their agreement, which made Peeta feel very uncomfortable. Katniss was watching, probably only to catch another glimpse of her sister, but still. "Come on Peeta, tell us."

"There was this one girl," Peeta finally relented. "I've had a crush on her for forever."

"See, I thought so." Flickerman flashed his winning smile, "I'll tell you what though, Peeta. You win this thing, and she'll have to go out with you."

Peeta shook his head. "No, that won't work."

"Oh, come on!" Flickerman frowned, "Who could resist a victor with your face?"

"If I won, it would mean her sister died. I don't think she'd ever forgive me."

"Her sister, huh? Oh, that's bad luck." The buzzer ending the interview blared, and Flickerman flashed his smile again, continuing to the end of the ceremony.

Rory and Vick snickered on the floor. Gale could feel his face flushing. When Katniss stood and left the room, he followed. She walked outside, and punched a wood beam holding up the roof of the porch. "Katniss-"

"How dare he!" She cut him off. "He doesn't even know me, and he has the gall to say something like that to whole country!" After a pause, Gale started to laugh, a slow chuckle at first, but it grew until he was leaning on the doorframe for support. "What!" Katniss snapped.

He looked up at her and managed to get out "You-you-That fire in your eyes." He sighed and caught his breath. "That's the Katniss I know and love: won't take anything she doesn't want from anyone, even a confession of love on national TV," Gale smiled.

"You heard him," she defended. "He said I was heartless! That I'd never accept him if Prim lost." Gale's smile fell. She turned away from him. "He's probably planning to protect her... for me." One more thing she could never repay him for.

"Would you accept him?" Gale asked.

"What?"

"If he did come back, after protecting Prim and failing, would you accept him?" Katniss crossed her arms and leaned on the pole she had punched. If Peeta did come back, being with him would probably be the only thing she could do to repay him.

Gale's fists trembled. Why didn't she get it? He was here. He'd always been here. Like she said, that baker's kid didn't even know her! "Katniss!"

"I don't know." She whispered. That wasn't good enough, she owed Gale a better explanation than that. "I just-" She was cut off by Gale punching the doorframe, and walking back inside. Katniss closed her eyes and turned away. She slid down the pole and sat in the dirt, propping her elbows on her knees and holding her forehead on her fists.

"That's not what I meant."


	6. Chapter 6

"Prim," a deep voice called. "Prim, you must find water. How do you find water?" Prim turned in circles, looking for the voice. Was it another mockingjay? She couldn't see her mockingjays in these strange woods.

"Where are you?" she called.

"Find the water...before you burn." The voice echoed. Prim felt that familiar warmth and turned. It was that pillar of fire. It was there every night, and every night, it tried to grab her. She ran until it caught up to her, then woke up in a cold sweat.

That pounding sound wasn't her heart, but Effie Trinket knocking at the door with her stylist team. It was time to leave for the Games.

She was going to be sick. Katniss hadn't slept at all the night before, and now, the stress of waiting for the Games to begin for the past few hours threatened to make her pass out, or worse. She couldn't stop those horrible images from swirling about her head; Prim dying in various horrible ways, Peeta lunging in front of Prim and dying on top of her, that exasperated, haunted look Gale gave her last night.

"Katniss," Hazelle kneeled in front of where she sat on the couch. "Honey, maybe you should go lie down."

"I can't," Katniss breathed. "I have to watch out for Prim."

"I know dear, but you can't help your sister like this." Hazelle placed her hand on Katniss's cheek. "We're all worried about you. I'll watch over Prim, you go get some rest." Katniss shook her head so forcefully, she lost all perspective. The pressure of it all finally made her top explode, her pain bubbling up and spilling over.

"No! It's my fault she's in the Games!" Katniss yelled. "I should have volunteered for her. I was supposed to, but I wasn't paying attention. I wasn't there for her when she needed me!" Katniss covered her eyes with her arm, trying to hide her tears. She wanted to stop. Hazelle didn't deserve to be yelled at, but the words just kept coming. She clutched the fabric of her pants in her fist and listened to herself as everything she'd been through in the past week fizzed up and out of her chest.

"I was supposed to go, but I didn't. I couldn't keep mom alive. I couldn't even do that! Why did she have to- Why did she keep leaving me!? When dad died, and Prim ... and- and." She was so exhausted, and the lump in her throat just kept getting bigger the more she tried to calm herself down. It was painful to speak, but she couldn't make herself stop. She didn't even know what she was saying any more; she just concentrated on the physical pain, it was easier to understand.

"And Gale. I don't even know what Gale wants. When we- and then he- It's just all too much! I just want- I just-" Hazelle sat on the couch next to Katniss and pulled her into a hug, whispering soothing things. Katniss gave up and crumbled into her shoulder and sobbed, clinging to Hazelle's shirt. When she was too tired to cry out loud, she opened her mouth in a silent scream. She didn't care if she looked weak any more. She felt weak. She was weak. She was utterly devastated and broken. Let the whole of Panem know for all she cared.

Hazelle held Katniss for an hour, shooing her own children from the room whenever they tried to enter. She stroked her hair and rubbed her back, and when Katniss's grip finally loosened, and her breathing began to even out, Hazelle spoke. "Katniss, your sister knows you love her, but what if your roles were reversed? Would you make Prim sit here and watch you in the Games?" Hazelle smiled sadly at Katniss. "She would be sitting here, waiting to watch you fight for your life, a thousand miles away, all for her. Could you put that guilt on her?"

Katniss looked at Hazelle, astonished. "But at least," she hiccuped, "at least she would be safe."

Hazelle shook her head slowly and turned toward the screen as the anthem began to play. "No where is safe in Panem, Katniss. Eventually, you would have to have let Prim fly or fall on her own." Gale stepped into the room slowly, followed by Vick, Rory and Posy. No one said anything as they assembled for the start of the Games, afraid that one wrong move would set Katniss off again.

Katniss leaned back against the couch again, but she kept a firm grip on Hazelle's hand as the count down began. Too tired to even feel embarrassed, and with no more tears left to cry, Katniss watched, waiting to see what her little mockingjay would do: fall, or fly.

Five.

This was it.

Four.

She had a plan.

Three.

She knew what Haymitch said, but she had her own plan.

Two.

Grab the first thing she finds as she runs for the forest.

One.

"I can do this."


	7. Chapter 7

The buzzer blared. The tributes took off running. Prim hesitated for a second to see where everyone was headed. When she saw a clear path, she ran. There was a small black bag in her path, she reached out to grab it and was knocked to the ground. Prim rolled a few feet and jumped up. She tried to run away, but the tribute grabbed her pig tail and held her by it. As Prim felt her feet leave the ground, she felt his knife coming around her neck. Before she could truly begin to panic however, her capter dropped her and fell to the ground. Prim didn't wait to see why. She scrambled up and ran for the trees.

As she ran, dodging bushes, crashing through low hanging branches, she felt her panic rise in her again. She almost died! A hard, sick lump formed in her throat and threatened to choke her. Prim ran as far and long as she could. Finally, exhausted, she climbed a tree, just like the mockingjays had taught her to do in her dreams. Hugging the trunk, she straddled a thick branch, and cried. Keeping her sobs silent and mostly under control, she waited for the cannons to fire off the count of the dead.

Peeta struggled to his feet. He had managed to catch Prim's attacker off guard and wrestled the knife away from him when he was on the ground. He looked over his first kill, certain that it would haunt him for the rest of his short life. Peeta grabbed the small bag next to the husk that used to be a person, hefted the larger one he had grabbed higher on his shoulder, and ran after Prim. She only had a small lead on him, but she was no where to be found. He didn't dare call her name, but he had to find her... for Katniss. When the cannons began to fire three hours later, he gave up looking and settled for walking the rest of the night. He had to find a defensible position he could hide Prim in.

It was a quiet night. Prim fell into a restless sleep, and woke at dawn. Looking around herself, she noticed how high she was a froze. Something rustled above her and to the left, whipping around a little too fast, Prim let out a high shriek and fell. Instinctively, she reached out and grabbed onto a small branch that bounced with her weight. Hanging by only one hand, and sobbing hysterically, she tried to get her free hand to clasp the branch too, but she was shaking too hard. She could feel her other hand start to slip, and closed her eyes. She wished Katniss were here!

Just as she was about to fall, something grabbed her, and tried to pull her up onto a stronger branch. Prim opened her eyes. It was that girl from District 11. "Grab the branch!" the girl said through clenched teeth. Prim nodded dumbly, swinging her leg up onto the branch as well. When she was safely straddling the bark once more, she clung to it and cried silently. "It's OK," the girl said, keeping a firm hold on Prim's arm, and rubbing the other soothingly. "If you were really going to fall, you would have done it while you slept." she reasoned, hoping it would calm Prim.

Prim gave her a nervous nod, still clutching the branch with both hands and thighs. "Thank you," she said. "I'm Primrose- Prim."

"I'm Rue." Rue held out her hand to shake, but when Prim didn't let go of the tree, she let it fall to her side. "I can teach you how to climb trees if you want."

"I can climb!" Prim said with indignation. "It's getting down I don't like..."

Rues smiled knowingly. "In District 11 we work in the orchards. Since I'm so small, I'm the one who climbs to the tops of the trees to get the fruit the adults can't get to." Rue leaned against the trunk and looked over the side of the branch at the ground some 15 feet below. "I've been doing it so long, I forgot to be scared of falling. But sometimes," she shivered and returned to the trunk, "looking down from the really high trees was horrible."

"Then why did you look down?" Prim asked.

"People would try to talk to me, or I would drop something. Nobody really likes heights." Prim smiled. Rue talked about her life in the treetops of District 11 until Prim felt comfortable enough to let go of the branch beneath her. Then, Rue talked her into moving away from their tree. "We need to keep moving so people don't find us," she said. Prim's eyes widened a bit as she glanced at the ground. "We can move through the trees if you don't want to try to get down yet." she offered.

Slowly, Prim pried herself off the branch, and followed Rue through the trees. When night fell and the anthem began, they tucked themselves into the crooks of the truck and branches to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

**To all those still waiting patiently for this update, thank you.**

**Chapter 8**

They survived the first day. Katniss couldn't believe it; over half the tributes were dead, and yet Prim and Peeta had both made it! However, they were on opposite sides of the arena. Peeta had set up residence in a small cave up by the river, and Prim and her friend were still high in the trees closer to the field. A band of careers from districts one and two had formed, and they had already taken down three tributes since the anthem the previous night.

It was so hard to watch, but she could not tear her eyes from the screen. Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith's voices were grating on what remained of her nerves: giving stats on each tribute, comparing this game to past games, and praising the tricks and traps of the arena and the tributes. If only they would stop talking and show her Prim!

"What good were those dreams?" Prim asked herself. "I can climb up, but not down." Rue had decided that today they needed to find food on the ground, but Prim just kept freezing on each branch. It was slow work, and at any moment, someone could come bursting through the underbrush and kill them both! It was all well and good in her dreams, and in the practice arena, but here in the games it was just too real. Not for the first time, Prim wished she was back home, safe in her sister's arms.

Finally on the ground, Prim felt steadier and more sure. Their first task was to find some water. Prim lead the way, remembering her lessons. It took half the day, but they made it to a small pond. All through the arena, Prim and Rue had kept their eyes peeled for enemies, and for food, but neither girl had seen any. No tributes. No eatable plants. For the first time, Prim began to wonder if Katniss had been wrong.

"What are we going to do if we can't find any food?" Prim asked.

"I've gone hungry plenty of times in District 11, I think we can last for a couple of days," Rue said. "We have the pond water, and we can chew some of the bark, maybe there are fish in the water?"

"Yeah," Prim walked over to the side of the pond and began plucking reeds. "If we make a basket, maybe we can catch a fish!" She said. She and Rue plucked several reeds, and hauled them back up into a nearby tree where they could weave in relative safety.

Meanwhile, across the arena, Peeta was debating staying at his camp. On one hand, it was an excellent spot to defend. On the other hand, there was no point in defending it without Prim. He decided to leave the larger pack in the cave and carry the small black one Prim had tried to grab, in case he found her. Inside the small black bag had been a handful of dried meat and some matches, but Peeta had put a water bottle and some crackers inside from his larger bag.

Peeta decided to follow the river. Maybe Prim had camped overnight close to the water? It was hours before he saw anyone. He was lucky that the group of careers that he did see were distracted. Peeta dove into the bushes at the side of the river and squatted, shaking as they walked right by him.

"Haha, did you hear her?" The blonde girl said. She turned to the tall boy with the sword, and bent over, pleading in a high voice, "Oh please, don't! I don't wanna die!" They others laughed hysterically. Monsters.

"Hey, did anyone see that kid? The Girl on Fire?" Swordboy said.

"She ran off in this direction," the other girl with brown hair replied.

"You sure?" Blondey asked.

Brownhair glared at Blondey, "I saw her at the cornucopia. She ran this way."

Peeta followed them, staying out of site in the bushes, trying to think of plan to get to Prim before these guys did. The only weapon he had was the knife that kid he killed dropped at the cornucopia. A knife was not going to be of much help against a sword, and that bow Blondey was carrying. Cursing himself that he didn't have a better plan, Peeta prayed that Prim was alright.

As night drew closer, Prim and Rue finished their baskets. Neither one was tight enough to hold water, so they would have to continue climbing down their tree to drink. However, Prim hoped that the holes in the basket could help it move faster in the water.

"If we lower the baskets into the water, and hold them still, when a fish swims over it, we can just pull it up really fast!" Prim demonstrated by hanging her finished basket over the branch and pulling it up really fast, catching a stick off the branch. Rue nodded, then gasped.

"Wha-?" Rue quickly slapped her hand over Prim's mouth, causing both girls to drop their baskets. "I heard something." Rue explained, craning her neck over the next branch. "Stay here, and stay quiet." Rue began to pick her way higher into the tree, while Prim sat frozen on their branch. Just then, Prim heard splashing water. People were coming! Silently, Prim tried to climbed higher to join Rue.

"Hey, look at this!" The second boy in the group ran towards a tree that was out of Peeta's line of sight. He pulled up two baskets and showed the others. Brownhair and Swordboy both immediately began scouring the area around the tree with their eyes. "Someone was here" Secondguy said.

"No shit," Swordboy shot, making Blondey smile and Secondguy glare. "Spread out and search for anything else, they can't have gone far." Secondguy and Brownhair split off in separate directions, while Blondey snuck after Swordboy.

Peeta had to move fast: Secondguy was headed right for him! In his haste to move away, Peeta caught Secondguy's attention. It was too late for discretion, Peeta ran full speed to his left, keeping his eyes peeled for Prim, the careers and any other possible dangers.

Prim and Rue quietly moved further up the tree, to try and get to the branch of another. By this time, Prim was shaking so badly that she feared her hands would slip and she would fall to her death. Anxiety building and terror rising with each second and each sound from below, Prim made only one fatal mistake: she grabbed the branch that held the tracker jacker nest.

"Ah, it looks like Disctrict Twelve has gotten into quite a predicament," Caeser narrated as Katniss watched in horror.


	9. Chapter 9

As she reached up for the next branch, Prim felt her hand strike something softer than wood. The next few minutes seemed to happen in slow motion. It was the most horrifying thing Prim had ever seen; it blew every squirrel bite she had treated away. First, she heard the buzzing of the disturbed tracker jacker nest. Then, she felt a sharp, burning pain as a sentry stung her hand. She yelped, and grabbed back her hand, holding it close to her chest. Tears stung her eyes as more tracker jackers swarmed up from the nest.

Prim's cry had caught Rue's attention above her, and Brownhair's below her. "Cato!" Brownhair called. "Cato, I found them, they're in the tree!"

Peeta heard Brownhair, stumbled to a stop, turned and reached for his knife. He only had a moment while Secondguy was still distracted by Brownhair. Peeta steeled himself, and ran into Secondguy, who was caught off guard. Peeta's knife cut deep into Secondguy's gut, but it was ripped from his hands as Secondguy fell backwards from the force of the blow. Secondguy lifted his spear, thrusting it towards Peeta, who jumped out of the way.

Secondguy was as good as dead. He could barely see through his pain, and Peeta knew where he had stabbed him; he could smell the foul stench of it. There was no time to retrieve his knife, so Peeta hopped over his fallen enemy, grabbed the fallen spear and took off towards the pond, and Prim.

Rue had moved to climb back down towards Prim, but then she heard the swarm collecting next to her. "Prim!" she half-screamed. Rue stood frozen, unsure of what to do. She couldn't fight the careers on the ground, couldn't beat off a thousand tracker jackers.

In a blind panic Prim climbed higher, moving around the trunk as she did to get away from the swarming nest. Three more tracker jackers had locked onto her, and followed. As Prim climbed and batted the bugs away from her, an arrow whizzed up past her, catching in the branch below Rue's feet.

When Peeta came crashing onto the scene, Blondey, Brownhair, and Swordboy were clustered under the tree. Brownhair noticed him first and threw a knife, which caught him in the shoulder. Peeta stumbled, but he managed to ignore the pain. He dodged the next knife and pointed his new spear at Blondey, who turned just in time to avoid being run through. Instead, the blade at the end of the spear ripped open her abdomen, and Blondey dropped to her knees. Peeta tried to carry with the momentum, and swung the spear left to avoid the tree. Brownhair threw another knife as she fell, dodging the spear. Her knife stuck in Peeta's thigh, causing him to do little more than cry out.

Peeta now stood between Swordboy, Brownhair and the tree, spear poised and ready. He studied the situation; Swordboy's sword was mostly a short range weapon, he could keep him at bay, but those throwing knives were getting the best of him. Now that he had slowed down, he was beginning to feel the pain of the blades sitting in his flesh. Brownhair righted herself, and readied two more knives. Swordboy fumed, kicking Blondey out of his way, he pointed his sword at Peeta's throat.

Prim could feel the tracker jacker venom coursing through her. Shaking her head to clear her vision, she tried to see what was happening below her, wondering if Peeta really was there to protect her like he said at the interviews. She looked up to Rue, who was trying to pull an arrow out of a branch, though to Prim, it looked like she was wrestling a snake. "Rue," she croaked.

Rue managed to get the arrow out, almost falling out of the tree in the effort. She said only one word to Prim, "Run." In the next second, Rue had thrown the arrow into the nest three feet away from her, and jumped out of site to the next tree. The gathering swarm burst; tendrils of insects spread out, trying to find the offender who had destroyed their home. Prim tried to follow where she had seen Rue go, but her venom-filled body could no longer hold onto the tree. She slipped, falling twenty feet through the air, and landed on Brownhair.

Peeta stabbed at the fallen career while she was pinned. Opening a hole in her neck, he moved to grab Prim off of her. His distraction gave Swordboy the opening he needed to get close. Prim screamed, and Peeta was run threw with the sword. Peeta tried to move, tried to pull his spear up, but he could do nothing. Falling to all fours, he looked into Prim's hazy eyes and said, "Run."

Swordboy chuckled, "Go ahead little bug," His eyes turned red and his smile widened until it was curling up around those eyes. Prim stumbled backwards, tripping over her feet. Her terror heightened by the venom and hallucinations. Swordboy pulled his sword out of Peeta's back, kicking him over Brownhair's corpse. "Run, run and hide." Prim scooted back, hyperventilating, a high whine escaping as she watched Swordboy morph into the stuff of nightmares.

He moved slowly towards her, enjoying her fear, savoring his coming victory. Peeta could not move his legs, could barely move at all. He had to show Katniss just how much she meant to him. He had to protect the one thing she cared about in the world, to his dying breath. Peeta managed to use the last of his strength to pull the knife from his shoulder and rip it across Swordboy's knee, effectively severing the ligaments. Swordboy screamed, fell on his useless leg and stabbed Peeta again and again until his head rolled.

The evil eyes off her, Prim managed to stand, Peeta's final word echoing in her head louder, and louder "run. Run. Run!" Prim was wading through a sudden flood of blood and corpses to the tree line. The trees were safe. The trees were calling to her. No, they were buzzing at her. The tracker jackers! They were coming! Prim ran as fast as she could, tripping over nonexistent limbs, and bumping in to trees she could barely see. It was all she could do to remain upright and moving.

The cannon sounded. One. Two. Three. Four.


End file.
